


Magic Space Wizard

by Bool1989



Category: Star Wars, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-09
Updated: 2016-06-09
Packaged: 2018-07-13 22:59:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 12,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7141592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bool1989/pseuds/Bool1989
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Born as a slave in the Star Wars verse. I couldn't think of anything worse... Oh wait! SI!OC</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

> My name is Darro and I was born as a slave. I don’t remember being born, but memories of a past life bubbled up into my consciousness as I grew up. When I turned three years old, it seemed that all of the memories came together to form a complete picture, and I suddenly woke up.
> 
> The first thing I remember noticing was _the medium_. Before I woke up, the medium had been a part of my life for a long as I knew, and I assumed that everyone could perceive it. After I woke up, it was like having a bucket of water poured over your head.
> 
> The medium was strange. I did not perceive it the same way that my eyes perceived light. It was like trying to explain color to a man who had been born blind. Impossible to describe. It was time and space, color and yet not color, a part of me and yet separate. I perceived it within myself, and around myself. Imagine feeling your body, spread out far beyond your understanding.
> 
> It was scary, but over time I got used to it. It was just there. There was not much I could do other than shutting it out as much as I could. I called it the medium because it seemed like a medium much like light was a medium you could see.
> 
> After a while, I learned that I had been born to a slave, which automatically made me a slave when I grew up. Wasn’t that depressing. My mother, whose name I don’t remember, was a sex slave in a harem of sex slaves. I never had a room to myself, and had to share with all of the harem members.
> 
> It took me a while to figure out what time period I was in. Apparently the future, based upon all the strange tech everyone used. I didn’t figure out that I was in the Star Wars verse until much later. The harem members lived in dorms and worked in a different wing of the building. I have never been let out of the dorm, so it was up to the members of the harem to teach me things such as how to speak the language, how to read and write, and some basic math.
> 
> \--
> 
> My mother walked into the harem dormitory. When she got to the corner in which I was working on a math problem, I noticed that she was crying.
> 
> “What’s wrong, mother?” I asked, a bit concerned. My mother had been a strong woman. I had never seen her cry in my current life, even when one of the men had been rough with her.
> 
> “Oh, Darro,” she said, “I’m worried.”
> 
> “Worried why?” I asked.
> 
> “A man came today, I know this man.” She said. “He often buys young children.”
> 
> “Are you worried that he will take me and not you?” I asked.
> 
> “No, it’s not that.” Said mother. “It’s just, there are rumors.”
> 
> I felt a sudden flickering of fear. Looking into my mother’s face, I realized that she was afraid too. Which was scary in and of its self. In the brief time I had known her, my mother had only rarely looked afraid. I could imagine many things that she was scared of, and none of them were good. But I had to confirm.
> 
> “Mother,” I said. “what are these rumors.”
> 
> She suddenly looked reluctant to tell me, but I wasn’t having any of that.
> 
> “Mother, it is important that you tell me,” I said. “so we can figure out what to do.”
> 
> “There is nothing that you can do,” she said, tears still streaming down her face. “Gobda still owns you. We don’t have a choice if he decides to sell you.”
> 
> “We always have a choice,” I said. “please, mother. I need to know.”
> 
> Mother looked at me for a long moment, her face indecisive. She sighed.
> 
> “Ok.” Mother said. “they say that man, he… he… he s-s-sells children to-to child-sex trade owners.”
> 
> My worst fears confirmed.
> 
> “When?” I asked simply. My mother seemed to know what I was talking about, for she said
> 
> “I don’t know. It could be in an hour; it could be weeks from now.”
> 
> I nodded. After I woke up, I remembered mother getting complements on how pretty her child had looked. I had thought long and hard on this particular scenario, along many others, after I had realized that I was a slave now and not in control of my own life and future. The possibility had long been in the back of my mind, and now that horrible possibility was now horrible reality.
> 
> But I knew what to do in this scenario. I had remembered from my past life that pedophiles liked young people for their youth, and prettiness. So all I had to do was make myself not look young or pretty.
> 
> “I know how to fix this” I said to mother.
> 
> “How?” asked mother, who looked both confused and relived. If she knew what I had in store, I bet she would not have look so relieved.
> 
> “Follow me.” I said.
> 
> We walked into the dorm fitting room. Going to one of the dressers, I made sure to block the view of the camera. Opening one of the drawers, I pulled out a small mirror and a hair comb. I then led mother to a corner where no camera could see. Using the hair comb, I shattered the mirror and pulled out a large fragment.
> 
> “What are you doing, Darro?” asked mother.
> 
> “Making sure I’m not sold into the child sex trade.” I replied solemnly.
> 
> “How?” asked mother, who was looking confused.
> 
> “The child sex trade thrives on children who look young and pretty,” I explained. “what im going to do is make it so that I don’t look young and pretty.”
> 
> Mothers eye’s widened. She looked from the mirror shard in my hand to my solemn face. She seemed to comprehend my plan.
> 
> “Darro, NO!” she protested.
> 
> “Leave.” I said firmly. “If they think you did this, they will kill you.”
> 
> “They will kill you too!” She pleaded. “You’ll die if you do this!”
> 
> “I will die if I become I child sex slave.” I said in a dead tone. “I could die if I do, I will die if I don’t. At least if I do this, I’ll have a shot at surviving.”
> 
> Mother’s tears were back in full force. She hugged me, tightly.
> 
> “Ok.” She said. “Ok. Just. Please. Promise me you won’t go too far.”
> 
> “I won’t, I promise.” I said.
> 
> She gave me a tearful nod, and left.
> 
> I took off my shirt, and looked at the shard of mirror in my hand. For a moment, I just gazed at my reflection in it. Then I held it to my arm, and pulled.
> 
> \--
> 
> I woke up to pain. Mutilating myself had been hard, but at least I had some endorphins to power through it. I didn’t move, as it was too painful. Instead, I simply lay on the midibed. I could feel kolto bandages all over my torso and face. I heard voices.
> 
> “It’s truly a same.” Said one voice that seemed rough and low. “He would have made a fine sex slave.”
> 
> The medium told me that the man had a dark aura. Much like the large mass of flesh that I guessed was Gobda. Gobda seemed harder to sense, however.
> 
> “Hmmp,” said the voice of Gobda. “If he hadn’t injured himself so much already, I would have had him flogged within an inch of life.”
> 
> “What do you plan to do with him?” asked other voice, who I guess was a man.
> 
> “There will be other buyers.” said Gobda. “Probably sell him into hard labor, the ungrateful brat.”
> 
> “I see.” Said the man. “If that is all?”
> 
> “Yes, the others will be transferred into your custody,” said Gobda. “and the druggats?”
> 
> “Transferred to your account,” Said the man. “A pleasure doing business with you.”
> 
> It seemed that the man and Gobda had left. I was alone with my thoughts. I had dodged a bullet. I would take hard labor over being a child sex slave any day.
> 
> **Four years later.**
> 
> I was on a freighter, bound to a destination that I did not know of. I was now seven years old. The ships fresher had backed up, so now everyone was forced to shit and piss in buckets, and the buckets contents would be thrown out an airlock. Sitting in a far corner, I thought about the life I had so far.
> 
> The past four years were, interesting to say the least. Gobda had eventually sold me to a man who dealt in educated slaves. I spent the next three years in a really hard school that trained me in math, science, computers, and mechanics, with the overhanging threat of being sent to a hard labor camp if I failed. With that kind of motivation, I learned as much as I could, and got the certificate in as little as three years. I had also learned that I was in the Star Wars verse, and that the thing I had been calling the medium was actually the force. That was a surprise.
> 
> “Why do you have so many scars?” I was interrupted from my thoughts by a small, sandy haired kid.
> 
> “You wouldn’t want to know.” I said, smiling at the kid. He pouted in a most cute way.
> 
> “Pleassse?” he whined, then leaned in a conspiratal whisper “I won’t tell anyone.”
> 
> I opened my mouth to tell him to piss-off, but I was interrupted.
> 
> “Anakin.” A dark-hair woman came up behind the child. “How many times have I told you! Don’t disturb the other slaves.”
> 
> “But Mooom…” said Anakin.
> 
> “But nothing,” said the woman, who then turned to me. “I’m sorry young man, was he disturbing you?”
> 
> I stared up at the woman, for a moment.
> 
> “No, it’s ok.” I said. “I’m Darro.”
> 
> “Shmi.” Said the woman, who then smiled sadly. “were you separated from your family?”
> 
> “Yeah, few years ago,” I said gruffly.
> 
> “Would you like to come sit with us?” asked Shmi.
> 
> “Sure, beats being on my own.”
> 
> As I followed Shmi back to her area, I wondered at my strange luck. What where the odds that I would end up on the same freighter as Anakin Skywalker? As I sat down next to Shmi and Anakin, there was only one thing I knew for certain.
> 
> Fuck ROB.
> 
>  


	2. Chapter 2

> It was easy to repair old droids, so I had done so and hooked them up wirelessly to an old computer I had fixed, then spread them out around cities neighboring Mos Espa. No one pays attention to droids, so they would wander around market places, listening for any good business opportunities, then send the information they found back on the encrypted network I had set up using an old subspace transponder.
> 
> It was how I had made the most of my money in the past three years that I had worked for Watto, my owner. And wasn’t that just a stroke of luck. Gardula the hutt had bet both me and the Skywalker family against Watto in a pod-race, and lost. I had been nine then, I was thirteen now. But there was a sticky situation with earning money. Technically, my master had the right to claim any money I earned.
> 
> Which made the “getting free” business rather difficult indeed. So I had decided to take the wait and see approach, and hope that someone honorable would come along and help me.
> 
> On the force side of things, whenever I had a free moment I trained. I sat in the Mos Espa market place and listened to the various inhabitants, trying to get a sense for their emotions, or read their surface thoughts. After I came home from work, I would try to lift things with my mind. It was like trying to learn to write. At first your handwriting barely looked like handwriting, but it gets better as you practice. Then you learn cursive, then you learn calligraphy.
> 
> After about a year of concentrated effort, I started seeing results. Reading surface thoughts started to become as easy as writing a note. Lifting something with my mind started to become as easy as lifting it with my hand. So I started working on my control. I practiced controlling the dust particles in my room, forming them into intricate patterns. I tried to peer deeper into the minds of passerby.
> 
> But it seemed that I hit a wall somewhere, because while I improved my telekinesis, my mindreading seemed to be limited to surface thoughts. Oh well. At least I was good at empathy.
> 
> \--
> 
> It was a day that started like any other day. I woke up and the first thing I did was check my networks. After downloading the information to a storage, I walked into the dining room to eat breakfast. I lived in the same apartment as the Skywalkers, because Watto made us all live together. Not that I minded.
> 
> “You and Anakin have duty today,” said Shmi. I nodded.
> 
> I picked up a lent bar (which apparently had everything you could ever need in a meal.) and walked out to Watto’s junk yard, which was about 1 mile away. Tatooine is one of the most annoying places you could ever live. The binary sun system’s harsh daylight made being out in the day hell. Sand was a perpetual annoyance, because it was everywhere. Dust storm are so harsh they killed anyone who was caught in them.
> 
> “There you are boy!” bellowed Watto in huttese as I entered the shop. “I got some more junk for you to look over, follow me!”
> 
> I nodded to him, and followed him out into the junk yard. He led me to a shady area in the back, and I noticed a speeder engine.
> 
> “Check it over,” said Watto. “then fix it if it needs to be fixed.”
> 
> Then Watto left. It was at that moment that I felt it. The Force resonated, and the colors changed. Two light presences pierced the dark aura that hung over Tatooine like miasma, their brightness startling. I looked up from the speeder engine. In the distance I spotted an object glinting in the light of Tatooine’s binary star system. It seemed to land in the desert just outside of Mos Espa.
> 
> Well. Finally.
> 
>  


	3. Chapter 3

> Fixing a speeder engine is well within my skill range. But I took my time. All the while, I watched as one of the light presences came closer and closer. Fortunately, the speeder engine was not the only thing that needed to be fixed, so I had plenty of things to work on while I waited for the light presence to get closer.
> 
> It was almost high noon when I was finished, so I walked back to the shop. I could feel the light presence very close. It entered the shop just as I did.
> 
> “What do you want?” I heard Watto say in Huttese as I entered the shop.
> 
> “I need parts for a J-type 327 Nubian,” said a man, who looked to be at least in his fifty’s, and looked to be dressed in the sort of thing you might find a moister farmer wearing. As I entered the room, the man looked at me sharply.
> 
> “All the parts are fixed and clean.” I said to Watto in Huttese.
> 
> “Fine,” said Watto. “Call that other boy and watch the shop.”
> 
> “We have lots of Nubian!” said Watto to the man after he turned to him. “What kind of junk you need?”
> 
> “Stay here,” said the man to a girl and an alien behind him. “And don’t touch anything.”
> 
> The man and Watto walked out the back door. His droid followed him.
> 
> “Anakin, come in here,” I called out. Anakin walked into the shop a few moments later.
> 
> “Watto is with a customer,” I said in huttese. “He wants us to watch the shop.”
> 
> After Watto and the man had walked out, I had jumped up and sat on the counter. Anakin joined me. It didn’t take long for him to spot the pretty girl. He stared at the girl for a minute. Noticing the stare, the girl looked embarrassed.
> 
> “Anakin,” I said. “It’s rude to stare. You should introduce yourself.”
> 
> Anakin gulped, before nodding with determination.
> 
> “Hello, my name is Anakin Skywalker.” He said, holding out his hand like I had taught him to.
> 
> “Padme,” said the girl, who shook his hand, before looking at me. “And you are?”
> 
> “Name’s Darro,” I said, shaking her hand as well.
> 
> “Are you two brothers?” She asked.
> 
> “Not by blood, but we like to think of ourselves as brothers.” I replied.
> 
> “Are you an angel?” asked Anakin. Padme’s looked confused, and I groaned and facepalmed.
> 
> “What?” said Anakin, looking between me and Padme.
> 
> “Nothing, that’s just kind of sappy,” I said.
> 
> Anakin pouted. I could never get over how cute he looked.
> 
> “What are Angels?” asked Padme.
> 
> “I heard the deep space pilots talk about them,” said Anakin.” They live on the Moons of Iego I think. They are the most beautiful creatures in the universe. They are good and kind, and so pretty they make even the most hardened spice pirate cry.”
> 
> “I've never heard of angels,” Said Padme.
> 
> “You must be one...maybe you just don't know it,” Said Anakin.
> 
> “OK, enough with the sappiness,” I said. “Anakin, what did I tell you?”
> 
> “That angels don’t really exist,” said Anakin sullenly.
> 
> “And what are the deep space pilots really talking about when they use the word ‘angel’?” I asked.
> 
> “Women,” said Anakin. “but I don’t really get it, why would they call women angel’s? Angel’s seem so different than what I’ve seen of women.”
> 
> “I’m a woman,” said Padme.
> 
> “No you’re an angel,” I said sarcastically.
> 
> “No need to be rude,” said Padme
> 
> “You’re on Tatooine, darling. Everyone here is rude.” I said.
> 
> “Im not rude,” Anakin protested.
> 
> “No, you’re just cute,” I said. “But nobody pays attention to cute boy’s.”
> 
> “HEY!”
> 
> “You two are funny kid’s” said Padme. “How do you know so much?”
> 
> “I listen to all the traders and pilots who come through here,” said Anakin” I'm a pilot, you know, and someday, I'm going to fly away from this place.”
> 
> “Hey, Hey,” I said, turning Anakin’s head with my hand, and looking down into his face. “Someday, _we_ will fly away from this place. And I’m piloting.”
> 
> “No fair,” said Anakin.” You always get to be the pilot.”
> 
> “Well, you get to pod-race,” I said. “I think we’re even.”
> 
> “Pod-race?” asked Padme.
> 
> “Yeah!” said Anakin. “Im the only human who can do it!”
> 
> “I think what she meant was, ‘What is pod-racing?’.” I said.
> 
> “Oh.” said Anakin “Pod-racing is this really dangerous sport, where you race these pods that are pulled along at high speeds. Lots of people die in them.”
> 
> “If they are so dangerous, why do you race in them?” asked Padme.
> 
> “Our owner, Watto, makes Anakin race in them,” I said casually
> 
> “Your owner? He makes you?” asked Padme, who looked confused.
> 
> “Well, yeah.” I said. “We are slaves, if that was not obvious.”
> 
> Padme’s eye widened almost comically.
> 
> “You’re slaves?” She asked.
> 
> “We are people,” said Anakin, who looked annoyed at me.
> 
> “I’m sorry,” said Padme. “It’s just, this place is really strange to me. I have never been to a world like this before.”
> 
> We were prevented from responding by the man coming back into the shop.
> 
> “We’re leaving.” Said the man. The droid and the alien followed him.
> 
> “Pleased to have met you, Anakin, Darro,” said Padme as she turned and followed the man.
> 
> “Pleased to have met you, too!” called Anakin.
> 
> Watto fluttered into the shop a moment later, an annoyed look on his face.
> 
> “Damn outlanders,” he muttered in Huttese. “They think cause we live out here we know nothing.”
> 
> “They seemed nice to me.” Said Anakin. I stayed silent.
> 
> “Hmm,” Watto said, before turning to us. “Both of you, clean the racks, then you can go home.”
> 
> Anakin let out a Yippy, while I followed him silently.
> 
>  


	4. Chapter 4

After we walked out of Watto’s shop, Anakin turned to me.

“I’m going to see Jira,” he said. “are you coming?”

“Na, I have work do to at home,” I said, before giving him a few coins. “Save a pally for me, yeah?”

Anakin nodded, and we went our separate ways.

\--

I was looking through possible business opportunities on my network when I heard the door to our hovel open, and Anakin call out for me and Shmi.

“Mom, Darro?” He called. “Im home!”

I walked out to the dining room, and spotted the people who had been at Watto’s shop earlier behind Anakin.

“Oh, my! Annie, what’s this?”

“These are my friends Mom, this is Padme and, oh I guess don’t know your names.”

“I’m Qui Gon Jinn, and this is Jar Jar Binks.” Said the man. I noticed that Jar Jar was being quiet.

“… and our droid 2RD2,” said Qui Gon after the droid beeped.

“I’m building a droid, would you like to see?” asked Anakin, who started walking towards our shared bedroom. Padme and the droid followed him.

“Your son was kind enough to offer us shelter.” I heard Qui Gon say as I followed Anakin.

\--

I watched Anakin show off the droid that he was so proud of for a few minutes. Padme seemed to really like the droid. And Anakin really seemed to like Padme, but I was not going to read too much into that.

I settled down into chair for a moment, mostly just listening to Anakin and Padme, while I pretended to be checking my network.

But it was mostly a formality. If all went well, the Skywalkers and I would be free people by tomorrow morning. Hopefully.

I was interrupted from my thoughts by Padme.

“Did you build this?” she asked me, looking at my computer.

“I repaired it mostly,” I said absently. “But I did build the holo-display out of old holo-emitters.”

“Wow,” said Padme. “You and your brother are really smart. Do you get the Holo-net out here?”

“No,” I said. “This is hooked up to my own private network.”

“Really?” she asked. “Who are you connected to?”

“No-one,” I said. “My network is hooked up to my droids, which I have spread out across many different cities.”

“Why would you do that?” asked Padme.

“To gather information,” I said. “No-one pay’s attention to droids that are working in cities. So they wander around, gathering information for me. I use that information to do business.”

“Hmm,” said Padme thoughtfully.

\--

As we all sat down for down for lunch, Shmi explained why slaves didn’t just try to run away.

“All slaves have transmitters placed inside their bodies somewhere,” she said.

“I’m working on a scanner to try and find them.” said Anakin. “Darro’s been helping me.”

“Yeah, if you try and escape, they will stun you or worse…” I said.

“They will blow you up. BOOM!” said Anakin.

“I can't believe there is still slavery in the galaxy. The Republic's anti- slavery laws...” said Padme.

“The Republic means jack-shit out here, darling.” I said. “No one’s gonna try and enforce Republic law in Hutt-space.”

Padme looked surprised.

“Darro, please don’t swear in front of guests,” said Shmi. I shrugged.

There was an awkward silence.

“Have any of you ever seen a pod-race?” asked Anakin, probably trying to break the silence.

“They have Podracing on Malastare. Very fast, very dangerous,” said Qui Gon.

“I know what you’re thinking, Anakin,” I said. “and it’s a stupid idea.”

“What? I could help them!” protested Anakin.

“Yes, you could.” I said. “and you could kill yourself doing it. But don’t worry, I have a better idea.”

“I know a man who will exchange currency,” I said to Qui Gon. “I am willing to take you to him, but you must do something for me.”

Qui Gon looked at me with interest.

“What do you have in mind?” He asked.

“I have a load of cash stored at a depot in the desert. If I take you to get your currency exchanged, would you be willing to use my money to set me and my family free?”

“Why couldn’t you use the money yourself?” asked Padme.

“Because Watto could have claimed it as his anyway,” I said. “and I would have been left with nothing.”

“What makes you think I won’t just take the money for myself?” asked Qui Gon.

“Because I know you are an honorable man,” I said.

“How would you know that?” he asked.

“Let’s just say that I do,” I said. Qui Gon smiled.

“It depends on how much money you have,” he said. “but I am willing to take you up on your offer. When will we depart?”

“After the storm is over.” I said.

Finally, after 13 years of being a slave, soon I would be my own master.


	5. Chapter 5

The thing about sand storms on Tatooine is that while they are harsh, they also tend to be short, most lasting less than an hour. As it was, we were preparing for our journey shortly after lunch.

“So, where is this ’man’ you spoke of?” asked Qui Gon as he watched me do a systems check on my speeder.

“In a city called Anchorhead,” I said. “It will take us about two hours to get there.”

“I see.” He said. “How fast does that thing go?”

“I can get it up to 200 mph in the air,” I said.

“In the air?” said Qui Gon. “Isn’t that a ground speeder?”

“It was,” I said. “I modified it so it could go in the air. Plus I added atmospheric shields so it could go fast.”

“Hmm,” he said thoughtfully.

“Aren’t you afraid of falling off?” asked Padme, who was watching me prepare.

“That’s what these harnesses are for,” I said, holding up a pair of harnesses, before turning to Qui Gon. “I will show you how to put it on properly.”

I helped Qui Gon put on the harness.

“Did you make that out of junk?” asked Padme, who looked worried.

“Yeah, and Anakin helped,” I said. “It has all sorts of redundancies in case something fails. I haven’t had a problem yet.”

Padme was prevented from saying anything more by Shmi walking up to us, holding a gallon of water.

“Here is the water you wanted,” she said, handing me the water. “Be careful.”

She kissed me on the head, and I hugged her. Despite only knowing her for 6 years, Shmi felt like a mother to me.

“I will,” I said as I hugged her.

I turned and put the water in the repulsor cart that I had hooked up to my speeder. Then Qui Gon and I got on the speeder and hooked up our harnesses to it.

With a final wave, I turned the speed on, did a final systems check, and then we rose into the sky and sped off into the distance.

Two and a half hours later

I led Qui Gon through the busy main street of Anchorhead. Mos Espa was large, but it had nothing on Anchorhead. I bet we looked strange, a small boy leading an old man. But I knew where I was going. I had left my speeder in a small ravine nearby, because I did not want anyone to steal it. We had walked the rest of the way into the city.

“The person I am taking you to is a basalisk who trades in rare items.” I said. “He’s one of the few honest traders on Tatooine, but he won’t take any shit, so be on your best behavior.”

We came upon a small, brown, nondescript building, and I walked inside confidently while Qui Gon followed me.

“Well, if it ain’t little Darro,” said the large, overweight besalisk, who walked up to me and gave me a hug.

“Dag, how you doing?” I said, hugging him warmly.

“Well enough, well enough,” said Dag. “as well as you can on Tatooine, anyway.”

“Who dis’ you got with ya?” He asked, looking at Qui Gon.

“This is Qui Gon Jinn,” I said. “A business associate, if you will.”

“How do you do?” said Qui Gon politely, holding out his hand.

“Good, good,” said Dag, who shook Qui Gon’s hang vigorously in one of his four large hand. “Always looking for new business associates.”

Looking around the inside of the building, you might get the feeling that it was a small pawn shop, given all the strange items that littered the place.

Dag showed us to a place to sit, and we all sat down.

“So, what do you have for me today?” asked Dag.

“Business.” I said. “You still trade for currencies, right?”

“I do, I do,” I said Dag, who was nodding. “What kind of currency we talking ‘bout here? And how much?”

I looked at Qui Gon.

“I have 20,000 Republic Credits,” said Qui Gon. “I need a local currency.”

“20,000 creds, huh?” said Dag, who was rubbing his chin in thought. “That’s quite a few creds. Let me see what I got for you.”

He went and got a data-pad, and put on a pair of spectacles, which made him look a bit comical.

“Let’s see,” said Dag, peering at the data-pad. “I got 14,730 druggats I’ll give you. For a fee.”

“How much is the fee?” asked Qui Gon.

“20%” said Dag.

“How about 10%?” asked Qui Gon.

I smiled. Well, it looked like Qui Gon could haggle. That was good, at least Qui Gon would be able to haggle the price down when he was to buy us from Watto. After a few minutes of haggling, Qui Gon and Dag settled on a price.

“A pleasure,” said Dag after he transferred the money into Qui Gon’s account. “When can I expect to see you again, Darro?”

“I don’t know,” I said. “Again, hopefully.”

Dag laughed.

“Ya right about that, you are, Darro.” He said.

Qui Gon and I walked out, but Qui Gon tapped my shoulder.

“Can you take us somewhere where we can have some privacy?” he asked. “I would like to talk to you about something.”

“Um, ok,” I said, suddenly wary. He must have sensed it somehow, for he smiled at me and gave my shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

“I know a place,” I said. “but you will have to pay for a private booth.”

“That’s fine.” Said Qui Gon.

After a while, we arrived at a restaurant that looked nice. Qui Gon ordered a private booth, and we after settling into the booth, we ordered drinks and a meal.

After the waiter left, I looked at Qui Gon expectantly.

“Yes?” I asked. “What did you want to talk about?”

“Tell me, Darro,” said Qui Gon. “How long have you been using the Force?”


	6. Chapter 6

Qui Gon Jinn, Jedi knight and master of the living force, was not quite sure what to make of the small pubescent Darro.  
  
It had all started when the queen’s ship had exited hyper-space seven hours ago. He had immediately sensed a strong force presence on the planet below. The force presence had felt strange. Despite the tinge of darkness around the edges, it was very bright in the light side of the force. But it also felt wild and raw, as if undisciplined.  
  
“Do you feel that, Master?” asked his padawan, Obi Wan Kenobi.  
  
“Yes,” Qui Gon replied, staring thoughtfully down at the computer display.  
  
He and Obi Wan where in one of the side rooms, meditating on their plans for Tatooine.  
  
“Is it a Jedi?” ask Obi Wan. “It feels so strange.”  
  
“I’m not sure,” said Qui Gon. “If it is a Jedi, then he or she has been away from the order for a long time.”  
  
“And if it is not?” asked Obi Wan.  
  
“Then I will deal with it if it comes to that,” said Qui Gon decisively.  
  
\--  
  
Strangely, the Force presence made no attempt to move from its spot as he drew nearer and nearer to Mos Espa with his party of an alien, a handmaiden girl, and a droid.  
  
After entering Mos Espa, he spotted a smaller junkshop, and the Living force had nudged him to try there first, and so he had. The moment he had walked in, the source of the strange force presence had walked in from a different entrance as well, and he got his first good look at it.  
  
Whatever he had expected, it was not this. It was a small boy, who had dark hair, and a heavily scared face. But his eyes were the strangest. They were black, and showed a shrewd intelligence, gazing at Qui Gon with a calculating look. Qui Gon was brought back to reality by the shopkeeper, who asked him what he needed.  
  
He and the shopkeeper, whose name he had learned was Watto, had walked out into the backyard and discussed the price of the hyperdrive parts he needed, but it seemed that the money he had to purchase the parts was worthless. In a huff, Qui Gon had stormed out, his party going with him, and searched for a secluded alcove so that he could contact Obi Wan to see if they had anything worth trading. Unfortunately, it seemed they didn’t.  
  
“Did you at least find out about that strange force presence?” asked Obi Wan over the com after they had discussed all of their options.  
  
Qui Gon blinked, only just now remembering.  
  
“Yes, I did,” He said. “I believe it was one of the slave boys at the junk shop we just left.”  
  
“What did you learn of him?” asked Obi Wan.  
  
“Not very much, im afraid,” said Qui Gon. “I only met him briefly. The most I know of him is that he is dark-haired and has a lot of scars.”  
  
“Hey,” Padme interrupted. “Are you talking about Darro?”  
  
Qui Gon looked at her with interest.  
  
“You spoke with him?” he asked.  
  
“Yes,” said Padme. “Well, him and his brother.”  
  
“He has a brother?” asked Qui Gon.  
  
“He said they’re not brothers by blood,” said Padme. “but they like to think of themselves as brothers.”  
  
“Padme, please,” said Qui Gon. “Tell me everything you know about this boy, Darro.”  
  
“Um.” Padme looked surprised. “Why is it so important?”  
  
“He has a strong force presence,” said Qui Gon. “the Jedi Council would likely be interested in him.”  
  
“Oh,” said Padme. “Um, he was kind of rude to me, but he seemed like his brother a lot, Anakin was younger than him. He and his brother seemed to know a lot too. His younger brother said that he was the only human who could pod-race. Uh… I can’t seem to think of much else.”  
  
“When you said they seemed to know a lot,” said Qui Gon. “what do you think they know so much of?”  
  
“Anakin said that he listens to all of the trader’s and pilots that come through here,” said Padme. “But I’m not sure about Darro. He just seemed really knowledgeable.”  
  
“Did you get all of that, Obi Wan?” asked Qui Gon over the com.  
  
“Yes master,” said Obi Wan. “I recorded it too.”  
  
“Very well,” said Qui Gon. “I will contact you later with an update.”  
  
\--  
  
Qui Gon had not been sure about what he was doing just wandering around the market place, but he had hoped that the force would provide an opportunity, and so it had, in the form of Anakin Skywalker. Anakin had rescued Jar Jar from his own foolishness, and had later offered them shelter during a sandstorm.  
  
When Darro himself had later offered to take Qui Gon to someone who would exchange currency, in return for using Darro’s money to set Darro and his family free, Qui Gon had felt like the force was giftwrapping Darro and his brother, Anakin, for him and the Jedi.  
  
Which had immediately made him suspicious of Darro’s motives. But try as he might, Qui Gon could not think of any plan that Darro might have that would be dangerous to the Jedi. So he had agreed to Darro’s offer.  
  
Then when the storm was other, they had journeyed to Anchorhead on Darro’s modified speeder, that was the first time that Darro had overtly used his force power. Darro’s power had seeped into his speeder, and he seemed to use the force to control it. He not only controlled the speeder’s inner workings, but also seemed to control the speeder’s momentum and direction.  
  
Darro’s Force control was good, Qui Gon had to admit. The way that Darro expertly handled his speeder was a testament his power. But despite that, it still felt strange to him, like it was wild and undisciplined. It took Qui Gon almost the whole ride over puzzling over the mystery of Darro’s strange force presence before he finally figured it out.  
  
Nobody had trained Darro. Somehow, Darro had figured out how train his power on his own. What was interesting was how far he had gotten, if Darro’s control over the speeder was any indication. So Qui Gon had made the resolution to speak to Darro about it when they had a moment to themselves.  
  
Hopefully Darro would be willing to answer his questions.


	7. Chapter 7

I considered Qui Gon’s question for a moment. Honestly speaking, I had expected Qui Gon to ask me about my abilities sooner or later. What was interesting was how he had phrased the question.  
  
“Your question assumes that I have been using the Force for at least a while,” I said a little bit guardedly. “Why would you make such an assumption?”  
  
Qui Gon looked a little surprised, but he hid it quickly.  
  
“It was the way you used the Force to control your speeder,” said Qui Gon honestly. “You handled it expertly, using the Force to control its direction and momentum. You could not have done that if you were a novice.”  
  
“I see,” I said, thinking how to explain my history with the force to Qui Gon. After a few moments, I looked up at Qui Gon.  
  
“Before I learned about the Jedi, and their name for the force,” I said. “I called it _the medium_.”  
  
“The medium?” asked Qui Gon curiously.  
  
“Yes,” I said. “I called it the medium because I thought it was a medium I could perceive, much like light is a medium you perceive with your eyes, or sound you perceive with your ears.”  
  
“Interesting,” said Qui Gon thoughtfully. “I don’t believe I have ever met a force user who described it that way.”  
  
“How do you perceive it?” I asked curiously.  
  
“Every Jedi feels it differently,” said Qui Gon. “I feel it as a connection to wider world, but also as an extension of myself.”  
  
“Really?” I asked. “It does not quite feel that way to me. To me, it feels as if there is an extra layer to everything. I feel like I can see it, but not with my eyes. But I also feel it as if it were part of my body.”  
  
“Truly?” said Qui Gon, who frowned in thought. “Can you perceive my presence in the Force?”  
  
“Yes,” I said. “I felt it as soon as you entered the system.”  
  
Qui Gon’s eye’s widened slightly. Suddenly, there was a slight shift in his force presence.  
  
“How about now?” He asked. I frowned as I focused on his force presence.  
  
“It seems more muted,” I said. “and it does not tell me as much. If I didn’t know it was there, I don’t think I would have felt it at all.”  
  
“But you can still feel it?” asked Qui Gon.  
  
“Yes.” I replied.  
  
“Interesting,” said Qui Gon, before his force presence shifted back to the way it was before. “You said that my force presence told you things?”  
  
I nodded.  
  
“What is it telling you now?” he asked.  
  
“A number of things,” I said. “You were concerned that I could feel your presence even though you were hiding it. You also feel mildly interested in me. Now you’re confused that I seem to be discerning the origin of your emotions. Now you’re alarmed that-”  
  
“That’s enough,” interrupted Qui Gon, raising a hand. He looked at me a bit guardedly for a few moments.  
  
“Can you read minds as well?” he asked.  
  
“Only surface thoughts,” I said. “I tried to go deeper, but I seemed to hit a block on that front.”  
  
“You tried to go deeper?” despite not showing any emotions on his face, I could tell that he was getting more and more alarmed.  
  
“Keyword being ‘tried’,” I said. “after a few months of trying, I decided to focus on my other abilities instead of continually bashing my head on a wall.”  
  
“I see,” his face showed little emotion, but I could tell that he was relived. “but that brings us back to my original question. How long have you been using the force?”  
  
“3 years, give or take a month,” I replied blandly.  
  
“Only 3 years?” he asked incredulously. “It takes a padawan the better part of a decade to learn to do what you do.”  
  
“Really?” I asked. “How often do they practice?”  
  
Qui Gon frowned.  
  
“The average padawan will meditate almost every day,” he said. “when a padawan first learns a new Force ability, they will often practice until they are proficient with it. But most of the time, we only use our abilities when they are necessary. That is why we meditate, to improve our connection to the force.”  
  
I frowned.  
  
“I have never meditated a day in my life,” I said.  
  
“Perhaps you were born with a particularly strong connection to the force?” suggested Qui Gon.  
  
“No, I don’t think that’s it.” I said. “Until I tried to figure out what I could do, I couldn’t do anything. Lifting stuff with my mind was a pain and really hard, people may as well have been rocks for all I could perceive them with the Force, and I couldn’t read the mind of a fly, much less a human. I had to practice my abilities every day to get where I am now.”  
  
“You practice your abilities?” asked Qui Gon curiously.  
  
“No, I’m just talking out of my ass,” I replied sarcastically.  
  
“Sorry, I did not mean to question the truth of your words,” said Qui Gon. “What I meant was, does practicing with the Force improve your connection to it?”  
  
“Yes,” I said, before asking: “Tell me, Qui Gon, what do you know about how the brain stores and uses a particular skill that you learn?”  
  
“I’m not sure how that is related to our discussion.” Said Qui Gon, who was confused at my question.  
  
“Humor me.” I said.  
  
“Very well,” He said. “All that I know is what I and my fellow younglings were taught back at the temple.”  
  
“When a person first starts to learn a skill, the part of their brain responsible for paying attention become more active as they learn the skill. However, as a person becomes more proficient in that skill, the brain rewires itself so that it is more efficient at doing that skill. That is why we are encouraged to practice with our lightsabers, so that…”  
  
Qui Gon suddenly gained an expression of realization.  
  
“Wait,” he said slowly. “are you saying that’s why your connection with the Force is as strong as it is?”  
  
“Yes,” I said. “I practiced with the force every day, practiced every technique I knew every day. When I could, I would sit in the crowded market and try to read people’s minds, or get a feel for their emotions. At home, I would practice shaping the dust into intricate patterns. I would melt sand into molten glass, then freeze it solid. I would practice moving large amounts of sand in the desert. To learn control, I would try to move the air, making strong breezes, or small vacuum balls. I would try to heat the air up or cool it, but that was harder.”  
  
“How did you learn to do all of this?” asked Qui Gon. “How could you have known you could do that?”  
  
“The scientific method,” I replied simply.  
  
“The scientific method?” asked Qui Gon incredulously.  
  
“Yes,” I said. “There were already rumors and stories about what the Jedi could do. I just compiled a list of all the stories rumors I knew, then tried each and recorded the results. To improve my skills, I experimented, trying out different ways of doing each skill, recording the results, then testing them against my controls. I have my records at the depot, you can look over them if you want.”  
  
Qui Gon looked almost shocked, as if the idea of using the scientific method to improve his skill with the force have never occurred to him.  
  
“Well,” he said after a long pause. “I think the results speak for themselves, but I would like to look at those records, yes. Thank you.”  
  
The meal arrived then, and we both paused our discussion to eat. After the meal, I turned my attention to Qui Gon.  
  
“Shall we go?” I asked. “or do you still have questions?”  
  
“I think they can wait,” Qui Gon. “We should be on our way.”  
  
“Very well,” I said.  
  
Together, we turned and walked out of the bar.  
  



	8. Chapter 8

I was sitting on a bench just out of view of Watto’s shop, waiting for Qui Gon to return. I suppose in one regard I was lucky that my facial scars made expression more difficult for me, because I was worried. Over the past three years I had worked hard to build up a large reserve of money, such that the cash I had given Qui Gon was enough to buy me, Anakin, and Shmi three times over. However, despite everything Qui Gon and I had done in preparation for this, there was always the risk that Watto would be stupid enough to demand an exorbitant price, far out of the range of what we really were worth.  
  
I guess I would just have to hope that Qui Gon would do what I had instructed him to do, or else everything I had done to stack the odds in our favor would be for naught. Watto being a toydarian meant that he was immune to mental influence. But fortunately there were other ways to influence him…  
  
 ** _Earlier that day…_**  
  
 _“Qui Gon…” I said softly. We were sitting on the small patio just outside the little apartment, watching the twin suns rise above the horizon._  
  
 _“Hmm?” he looking up from a data-pad of my notes I had written during my Force training._  
  
 _“Listen,” I continued. “the money I have might not be enough to buy all three of us from Watto. If that is the case-”_  
  
 _“Don’t worry,” Qui Gon interrupted. “Your money is more than enough, Darro. By this time tomorrow, you and your family will be free.”_  
  
 _“They are my family, aren’t they?” I mumbled, looking inside the apartment to see Anakin and Padme playing a game of dejarik on an old board I had found. I smiled a bit sadly. “They aren’t blood, but they are my family.”_  
  
 _I turned back to look at Qui Gon with a stern gaze._  
  
 _“Qui Gon, If worst is to happen... If there is not enough money, you’re to pay for Anakin and Shmi only.”_  
  
 _For a long time, Qui Gon stared at me silently, an inscrutable look on his face._  
  
 _“You would sacrifice everything for your family, even a bid for freedom?” Qui Gon asked quietly._  
  
 _“Yes,” I said resolutely, before smiling grimly. “Besides, in another three years, I will have more than enough cash to free myself.”_  
  
 _“Then I must do my very best to free you and your family,” said Qui Gon determinedly. “Do you have any kind of leverage-”_  
  
I was snapped out of my memories by someone tapping my shoulder. I turned to see that it was Qui Gon, who had a slight frown on his face. My heart sank.  
  
“Did it work?” I asked hesitantly.  
  
Qui Gon blinked, turning his full attention on me.  
  
“Yes, it worked. You and your family are free now.” He said curtly. Despite the soaring feeling in my chest, I was also rather confused.  
  
“Then why are you so upset?” I asked, a little weirded out by the contradiction of his statement and his expression.  
  
“What? No!” said Qui Gon, blinking at me. “I am happy for you and your family.”  
  
“But?”  
  
“Well, the negotiations were… unpleasant.”  
  
 ** _Earlier that day…_**  
  
 _“Then I must do my very best to free you and your family,” said Qui Gon determinedly. “Do you have any kind of leverage I can use to help buy you?”_  
  
 _“You mean like, blackmail?” Darro asked._  
  
 _“I suppose, though I wouldn’t use that term,” said Qui Gon indignantly._  
  
 _“Call it like I see it, darling.” Darro smugly replied. “Come with me, I think I might have something for you.”_  
  
 _They trailed into the shabby little apartment, entering the room that Darro and Anakin shared. Darro pointed at a spare seat for Qui Gon, and they both sat at his jury-rigged computer._  
  
 _“I am amazed that you managed to get all these parts to work, much less get them to work together,” mused Qui Gon_  
  
 _“What can I say?” said Darro idly. “Life in a penal colony just doesn’t appeal.”_  
  
 _Qui Gon blinked at the non sequitur, but decided to disregard it._  
  
 _Darro turned the computer on, then pulled up a number of windows that floated freely in the air, projected by holo-emitters. Qui Gon had seen this kind of display before, but it was not very common, mostly preferred by tech enthusiasts, but not commonly used in professional environments for reasons beyond Qui Gon’s current knowledge._  
  
 _After watching Darro fiddle around with his computer a bit, a window of what looked like audio files came up, and Darro put on a head set._  
  
 _“Sorry, I have to listen to this for a bit,” he said ashamedly. “I didn’t think to process this data before. Some master planner I am.”_  
  
 _“No worries,” smiled Qui Gon. “how long before Watto expects you at the shop?”_  
  
 _“I have to be there in two and a half hours,” said Darro after checking his chrono. “I should have something for you in one.”_  
  
 _“Very well,” said Qui Gon as he stood up. “I shall return then.”_  
  
 _ **Later, in Watto’s Shop**..._  
  
 _If Qui Gon was being honest, he didn’t like the plan that Darro had laid out for him. Unfortunately, If Qui Gon was being really honest, he couldn’t see an alternative to Darro’s plan. He would like to resolve this honestly and peacefully, but unfortunately that was not how things were done on Tatooine. On particular piece of Darro’s advice stuck out in his mind:_  
  
 _“The only thing on Tatooine that most people understand,” Darro had said. “Is sticks and carrots.”_  
  
 _Qui Gon had frowned._  
  
 _“What are carrots?”_  
  
 _“They are a kind of vegetable,” Darro had said irritably. “But that’s not important right now.”_  
  
 _“What I am talking about is a metaphor. A Stick is something that a person fears, while a Carrot is something that a person wants. Do you understand?”_  
  
 _“Ah, yes. I do believe so.”_  
  
 _“Now, the business people around here are intimately familiar with that metaphor, because they do business by threatening each other with stick, and enticing allies with carrots. It’s a very cut-throat business world around here, and I know for sure that Watto understands it very well.”_  
  
 _“I see…”_  
  
 _\--_  
  
 _“Ah, the Nubian’s back, huh?” said Watto when Qui Gon stepped into his shop. “Finally got something real to trade?”_  
  
 _“Yes,” said Qui Gon curtly, before setting down a data-pad in front of Watto._  
  
 _“What’s dis?” asked Watto, confused and angry._  
  
 _“A summary of how much debt you owe,” said Qui Gon, smiling grimly. “I’m sure your creditor’s would be very interested in having this information.”_  
  
 _Watto stared at Qui Gon for a few moments, shocked, before snarling in anger. Snatching up the data-pad, he started to read, growing paler by the second._  
  
 _“You can’t prove any of this,” said Watto in a weak voice a few minutes later._  
  
 _“I don’t have to,” said Qui Gon. “Your Creditor’s would be sure to follow up on the information, for if it is correct, they will have found a reason to wring your neck.”_  
  
 _“What do you want from me,” asked Watto with a sense of finality. Qui Gon felt terrible for bullying the Toydarian, but it was necessary to free Darro and his family._  
  
 _“Your three slaves and the parts I need…” Qui Gon paused for a moment, waiting to see how the Toydarian would react. Watto seemed to puff up a bit in anger, but he controlled himself._  
  
 _“… at a reasonable price.”_  
  
 _“Huh. That’s all?” asked Watto, who seemed a little surprised._  
  
 _“Yes.” said Qui Gon. He wanted to say the data would be destroyed afterward, but Darro had warned him not to, or else he would seem weak._  
  
 _\--_  
  
I stepped inside the small apartment, feeling strangely empty. Gaining my freedom had been the singular focus of my life for so long, I wasn’t sure what to feel now that I had achieved it.  
  
Shmi, Anakin, and Padme were sitting at the table, waiting for us. Hearing the door open, Shmi had stood up. When she saw me, she asked one word:  
  
“Darro?”  
  
I smiled at her and said:  
  
“We are all free!”


	9. Chapter 9

> We were finally leaving this dust bowl of a planet. After communicating with the Queen of Naboo, my family and I were invited to join them on their journey to Coruscant. Shmi was uncertain if she wanted to go or not, but Anakin and I convinced her that this was our best chance of leaving Tatooine, as otherwise we would have to pay for passage.
> 
> I used some of the left over money to rent some droid lifts that would take us and our cargo (In addition to the ship parts, we had to bring our meager belongings) to the Queen’s ship. The droid lifts would automatically return to their owners when we were done with them.
> 
> \--
> 
> As the droid lift crested the dune, we caught our first sight of the Nubian ship.
> 
> _There is a big difference between seeing it on a screen versus seeing it with my own eyes_ I thought as the sight stole my breath away.
> 
> It resembled a finely crafted spear head made of pure chromium, with two small wings that housed the thrusters. Glinting in the sunlight, I thought it was the most beautiful starship I could recall seeing, and I had seen a lot of starships.
> 
> “The Naboo Royal Starship,” said Qui Gon from behind me. “That is its name.”
> 
> I frowned.
> 
> “They couldn’t have come up with something more imaginative?” I asked. “That doesn’t sound adequate for something so beautiful.”
> 
> I felt something from Padme at that moment. Ah, it seemed like the ship _did_ have a name, but it was supposed to be a secret. _Maeluirm_ , an old Naboo word that didn’t translate well into Basic, but was generally related to peace and prosperity.
> 
> The droid lifts came to a rest near the entrance to the ship, where a small crowd of people were waiting for us. I felt the same signature light Force aura from one of them, who I assumed was Obi Wan.
> 
> “Welcome back, Master,” he said as we stepped off of the lifts.
> 
> “Thank you, Obi Wan,” said Qui Gon. Gesturing at me, he said “This is Darro and his family; Anakin and Shmi Skywalker. Young Darro here helped me get the parts and supplies we needed.”
> 
> “Darro, this is my Padawan, Obi Wan Kenobi,” introduced Qui Gon.
> 
> “A pleasure to meet you,” I said warmly, holding out my hand. Obi Wan smiled and shook it.
> 
> “Qui Gon told me a great deal about you,” Obi Wan commented.
> 
> “All good things I-,” I was interrupted by a sudden disturbance in the Force. There was a presence, a _dark_ presence, moving in our direction at a fast pace. I had never felt something so dark at that that presence.
> 
> “Qui Gon!” I said sharply. “ _Something_ is coming this way!”
> 
> “I feel it too,” he whispered, glancing at Obi Wan, who nodded.
> 
> “It will be here in less than a minute,” said Obi Wan.
> 
> “What are you talking about?” asked Padme, who sounded concerned. Turning to look at her and my family, I noticed that they were frightened. At that moment, I realized that they were all in danger. We had only just arrived, no repairs were underway yet, and there were eleven people standing around outside the ship.
> 
> If I didn’t do something quick, we would all be dead, or worse, in the next minute.
> 
> There wasn’t time for words, so instead of speaking I sprang into action. I grasped the Force, reaching out and seizing our cargo and lifting it, as well as everyone that wasn’t a Jedi, and began to move them all a line, as fast as I could without hurting anyone. Everyone gave out cries of surprise and fear, but I ignored them.
> 
> “Get on the ship,” I said to the Jedi with strain as I struggled to keep everyone and everything moving in order.
> 
> “You’re not staying behind, are you?” asked Qui Gon hesitantly.
> 
> “NO! Get on the ship!” I almost snarled. “Tell the pilot to spool up the engines! I will jump on the ramp if I have to.”
> 
> Qui Gon stood still, peering at me with an inscrutable look on his face.
> 
> “What are you doing?!” I yelled in frustration. “There’s no time for debate!”
> 
> “No, but you don’t need to do this alone,” Qui Gon said. “We can help you.”
> 
> “You can help me by telling the kriffen pilot to spool up the engines!” I said angrily. I then softened my face. “Don’t worry about me, I will be right after you.”
> 
> Qui Gon frowned.
> 
> “Do as he says,” he said to Obi Wan. “I will help him.”
> 
> Obi Wan hasten to do as he ordered; and Qui Gon and I moved the cargo and the people after them. A few seconds later I felt the engines turning on. But I also felt the dark presence speed up. Damn, it would be here in less than ten seconds.
> 
> The ship was hovering and the struts were retracting, and all the people were on board, but the cargo was still going up the ramp. 5 seconds to go, and all the cargo was aboard. 4 seconds to go, and Qui Gon jumped on the ramp. 3 seconds to go, and I jumped after him.
> 
> He was there, and I grabbed his hand. I smiled at him.
> 
> “Woo, I was-”
> 
> Then I felt it. The dark power I had felt earlier suddenly wrapped around me and I was pulled off the ramp.
> 
> The last thing I saw was Qui Gon’s stricken face as I fell back to the ground.
> 
>  


	10. Chapter 10

Qui Gon stared at the space where Darro had been just a moment before, the last thing he had seen of him was his panicked expression as he disappeared off the ramp.  
  
Qui Gon’s first instinct had been to jump after him, but one look at the ground had dissuaded him of that notion, as the ground was accelerating away far too quickly for him survive the jump.  
  
He turned and ran into the ship before it broke atmosphere, and came face to face with Darro’s brother.  
  
“Where’s Darro?” asked the boy, who seemed confused.  
  
Qui Gon stared at him, at Anakin, and wondered how he was support to tell him that his brother was more than likely dead, or worse?  
  
“I sorry, Anakin,” he said softly. “There’s nothing I can do.”  
  
Pure shock passed into Anakin’s face.  
  
“What?” the boy asked. “What do you mean? What happened to him?”  
  
“The Dark Sider pulled him back to the ground just before we accelerated into orbit,” said Qui Gon. “By the time I could react, we were already accelerating.”  
  
“We’re going to go rescue him, right?” asked Anakin. “We aren’t leaving him are we?”  
  
Qui Gon was silent. If he was being honest with himself, he wanted nothing more than to attempt a rescue. But his better sense told him that doing so was foolhardy and would likely end in a failure of his mission. Fortunately, he was saved from having to answer by Shmi, who came an bustled Anakin away.  
  
 _Damn it,_ Qui Gon thought. _Sometimes I really hate being a Jedi…_  
  
\--  
  
I struggled to shrug off the Force Grip, as the dark aura was nauseating. I was 10 meters off the ground when I figured it out and formed a Force Shield around my body, forcing the dark aura out. No longer under its influence, I threw out my senses to get a feel for my environment. The Naboo ship had flown away, and I was left with the dark entity, who’s focus was on me.  
  
 _I need to escape!_ I thought desperately.  
  
Using my power, I created a hard cushion of air that I jumped off of, away from the entity. It raced after me. I when I hit the ground, I ran as fast as I could, using the Force to propel my limbs, and moving the air to create a pressure differential, with a lighter pressure in front of me, and a heavier pressure behind me. I shot forward like a bullet, the entity hard on my tail.  
  
Keeping my awareness of it through the Force, I realized it wouldn’t be enough. The entity would catch up with me in a few seconds. I needed to do something to stop it from chasing me. With that thought in mind, I started pulling electrons from the air and charging up my bio-electric field. Two seconds later, I _spun_ , pointing two fingers in the entity’s direction, and from my fingers sprung lightning, bright enough to blind me for a few moments.  
  
Through the Force, I saw the entity raise it’s red lightsaber in defense, but that was not was I was aiming at. I intend to strike the ground and have lightning arc up through his body. But at the last moment, it seemed to sense my intent, as it jumped high in the sky.  
  
Damn it, all that move had done was buy me a few more seconds. I was already running again, trying to get a lead before it landed.  
  
 _A precision technique won’t work on it,_ I thought. _Perhaps an area effect technique?_  
  
I had devised a number of techniques just in case I got into sticky situations like this, then spent a month or more mastering them. The technique I had in mind was meant for dealing with a large number of hostiles quickly, and could be very destructive if not formed properly. But we were in the wide open desert, and I didn’t have to worry about harming innocent bystanders.  
  
I gathered the Force in the palm of my hand, and spun around to face the entity again. Thrusting my hand forward, a reddish shimmering haze seemed to emit from it in a wide arc. The entity suddenly sprung to the side, running to get out of the field of the technique. The ground in the field of the technique suddenly blistered and started to liquefy under the intense heat.  
  
Keeping my focus, I turned my hand to try and keep the entity in the field, only for it to suddenly jump. It thrust it’s hand at me, and shot lightning at me. I jumped to get away from the lightning, halting the technique and creating a bubble of air around me. Free of my control, the heat dispersed, rising in a thick plume from the ground. The entity and I were buffeted by it, rising higher in the sky.  
  
I didn’t waste the opportunity, using the extra energy to do another lightning attack. The entity blocked it with it’s lightsaber, then suddenly responding in kind, casting lightning at me before I could get away.  
  
Pain. Pain more intense than anything I had ever experienced. The lightning seemed to arc through my soul, causing me to spasm in agony.  
  
And then I blacked out.  
  
\--  
  
I woke up slowly, and mentally frowned. I ached everywhere, my mind felt like mush, and I seemed to laying with my arms and legs bound on a hard, cold, and diagonal surface. How had I ended up here? With a start, I remembered the chase, and the all too brief battle.  
  
 _I lost_ , I though as I opened my eyes. Blinking in the dim light, I looked around the room. There didn’t seem to be much to it; it was about 20 by 20 feet with a 3 by 6 foot door across from me, a single dim light hung directly above me, and the only furnishing was the durasteel board that I was bound to. I noticed that there was a needle in my arm that connected to a set of bags that were hung up beside me. I was nude.  
  
Who was that entity, and why had he or she brought me here? I didn’t know. In all honesty, I had thought it would kill me. I didn’t know why thought that, just that it was instinct.  
  
When I had first awakened in this world, I had quickly realized that there were gaps in my memory. I had known about Anakin Skywalker, and that he was important. I had known about Qui Gon, Obi Wan, Yoda, and some other Jedi. I had known that they would be fighting some kind of war in the future. But that was the extent of my knowledge. I didn’t know who they were fighting, I didn’t know why the war was being fought, and I only had the vaguest sense that there was someone behind the scenes pulling the strings for some nefarious end.  
  
With that in mind, I had decided to just wing it, do my best to get free, and stay out of the war as best as I could. Then I had met Anakin himself, and that plan had gone out the window. I knew that as Anakin’s adopted brother, it would be hard to remain uninvolved. So I had decided to just go with the flow, and do my best to manipulate Qui Gon into freeing all of us. That plan had worked, sort of. But then that dark entity had to ruin everything.  
  
Well, no use ruminating on the past. Time to get out of this place.  
  
I reached for the Force and- what?  
  
I frowned. Something was wrong. I tried to grasp the Force, but I couldn’t. I strained to feel it, but it felt as if it was from a great distance. Comeing back to myself, I looked at the IV bags that I was hooked up to. Hmm, it seemed that whatever it was shooting into my veins was keeping me from reaching for the force.  
  
My frown deepened. Did that mean I was trapped here? That wasn’t good, that meant, that meant…  
  
What did it mean? Was that entity going to come back and kill me at some point? Or would they just leave me here to starve?  
  
My thoughts were interrupted by the door opening. A being stepped in, and even with my Force suppressed I could feel the darkness rolling off him. He was garbed in a black robe and cloak, and his face was shadowed.  
  
“I must congratulate you,” said the being with a cruel smile and a gravelly voice. “Not many beings could have held off my apprentice for more than a few seconds. You manage to for a full minute. I’m afraid I had to punish him most severely.”  
  
“Who are you?” I asked rudely. “Why am I here?”  
  
The being paused, his cruel smile widening.  
  
“Who I am doesn’t matter,” He said. “All you need to know is that you shall call me master. As for why you are here… well, I have use for you.”  
  
I stared at him in disbelief.  
  
“I just got free from being a slave, and you want me to call you master?” I snarled. “Not. Happening.”  
  
He laughed, as if I had just told him a funny joke.  
  
“Oh I think you will,” He said. “In fact, when I though with you, you will be begging to call me master.”  
  
He paused.  
  
“But there is a way you could escape,” the being said. “All you have to do is give in to it.”  
  
I stared at him in confusion.  
  
“Give in to what?” I asked.  
  
“The hatred, the anger,” he said with a small smile on his face. “use it to strike me down and escape. I can feel it in you, it would make you strong.”  
  
I felt a sudden spike of fear. Due to events in my old life I had unresolved anger that I had kept carefully suppressed, because I had feared what it would do to me if I let it out. I had always felt the dark side of the force at the edges of my awareness, and feared that it would change me irrevocably if I used it, if I let it out. Absolute power corrupts Absolutely and all that jazz. I didn’t want to be a person that lacked empathy, didn’t want to be a person that couldn’t love others. And so I had remained in the light, never letting the dark touch my soul.  
  
“No,” I said harshly.  
  
“Ah,” He said. “Then you won’t mind if I do this?”  
  
With that he raised his hand, and I felt Pain.  
  
 **Three hours later.**  
  
If I thought I had experienced pain before, I was wrong.  
  
 _“Give in to it,” the being demanded. “Give in to your hate. Strike me down, and then you can escape.”_  
  
My skin felt like it was melting and bubbling, as if someone had poured acid on it.  
  
 _“No,” I said weakly, only for another bout of Pain to plague me._  
  
Razors were slicing up and down my veins.  
  
 ** _Would it hurt so much_** _, the dark part of me whispered. **If you turned?**_  
  
My internal organs felt like they were being diced up or liquefied.  
  
 _Yes_ , _said my lighter side. I couldn’t betray Ani and Shmi like that._  
  
My fingernails and toenails felt like rusty bits of metal were being jammed in them.  
  
 ** _You wouldn’t be betraying them,_** _said dark me. **You would be liberating yourself so that you can protect them.**_  
  
My eyeballs felt like twin balls of fiery pain burning in my skull.  
  
 _That’s not how it works! Light me protested. I can’t protect them if im evil. I can’t protect them if im insane. I can’t protect them if I don’t want to._  
  
A migraine that felt like an elephant was standing on my head.  
  
 ** _Just because you’re dark won’t mean you will stop loving them_** _, dark me assured. **Besides, you’re no paragon of good anyway. You’ve destroyed many lives in the process of freeing yourself. This is no different.**_  
  
My spine felt like a live wire that burned with painful energy.  
  
 _But… I wouldn’t be **me!** light side me said. I’d be nothing more than a dark, twisted caricature of myself. _  
  
Nails were being pounded into my bones.  
  
 ** _You would be free,_** _said dark me. **You would be able to kill this being, and liberate yourself. Don’t you hate him, despise him, for what he is doing to you? Don’t you want to turn the tables and torture him yourself?**_  
  
My heart beat painfully, so fast, so wild that I was surprised it hadn’t given out.  
  
 _I-I-I-I… light me said, growing smaller and smaller. And then it abruptly changed. **I DO!!**_  
  
My hatred and anger burst out of the seal that I had kept it under for so long, and burned through my veins like liquid fire. The Force returned to me in an instant, but it was different. Instead of the cooling water I remembered it as, it was a rushing, burning fire. And it felt great.  
  
I _melted_ the durasteel binding me, the hot material flowing over my wrists and ankles but not burning them. I pooled it into a ball of liquid fire and threw it at the dark being, but he deflected it with a cool ease.  
  
“Good,” He said, his cruel smile returning. “Good. Now, strike me down… if you can.”  
  
I snarled at him, and thrust my hand out, emitting a wave of heat so hot it instantly melted the walls and floor. The being had wrapped himself in a blanket of dark energy before the heat hit him, and he was unaffected.  
  
“Gooood,” said the being. “You are strong in the force.”  
  
Suddenly the heat disappeared, and I found myself pressed down to the floor with a wave of dark energy.  
  
“But it is untrained,” said the dark being. “You could never defeat me as you currently are.”  
  
I stared at him.  
  
“You lied!” I shouted. “You said I could kill you!”  
  
“I told the truth, from a certain point of view,” said the being, unfazed. “If you were strong enough, you could have killed me, and escaped. But you aren’t, so you can’t.”  
  
“However, with training you could become strong enough to surpass me, and so claim your revenge.”  
  
“And who’s going to train me, you?” I said sarcastically.  
  
“If you are willing,” said the being smugly.  
  
I blinked.  
  
“What about your other apprentice?” I asked, confused.  
  
“He is dead,” he said, as if he couldn’t care less.  
  
“How?” I asked simply. “Did you kill him?”  
  
“No, he was killed by the Jedi Kenobi.”  
  
“What? When did that happen? How long have I been here?”  
  
“Kenobi killed my apprentice Darth Maul three days ago,” he explained. “And I have kept you sedated here for five weeks.”  
  
“And my family?” I asked hesitantly.  
  
“Anakin Skywalker is in training to become a Jedi, while his mother is living on Naboo.”  
  
I stared at him, thinking. I still loved my family, but it seemed like they were safe and sound for the moment. But I knew for a fact that I hated this man, I hated him so much I wanted to kill him. But I couldn’t, not unless I grew more powerful. And for some inexplicable reason, he wanted to train me. Oh well, baggers couldn’t be choosers.  
  
“If I were to become your apprentice, what would you require of me?” I asked.  
  
“For the moment, that you call me master,” said the being, his cruel smile never leaving his face. “In time, we shall see.”  
  
I bowed before him.  
  
“Very well… Master.”  
  
“Good!” said the being. “I am Darth Sidious.”  
  
And with a beatific smile, Darth Sidious proclaimed:  
  
“And from now on, you shall be known as Darth… Maleficus.”


End file.
